sent to primary care provider: request for more tests, links to supplements

hello [primary care provider],

not trying to be a thorn in side, just have 15 years of neuropathic issues i feel i'm close to figuring out, so just trying to get all my bloodwork done asap to give me a solid baseline before i start supplementation or go on to neurology.  that's all.

i came to you with two things:  15yr neuropathic symptoms getting more frequent/worse and spreading to hands, and a tip that i may have a genetic P5P-deficiency.

symptoms:  tingling/numbing and cramps/spasms/tics limbs spreading from one weak leg/foot to both arms/hands, cold/itchy feet/hands, whole body vibrates/trembles, blurry vision and vertigo episodes, itchy back/hands/ears, daily loss of balance aka stagger often but always catch myself in stride like a dancer, hypersensitivity to bright lights/noise for 15 years getting worse (can barely drive at night, takes 5min for eyes to adjust when i walk outside, bright phone displays can trigger blurry vision/migraines), dead-battery hungover 'leave me alone' feeling everyday, low energy/focus so low i'm only half functional before 1p (used to be morning guy) and barely go out after 8p (which isn't like me), pain in all my joints and endless sport 'injuries' if i do yoga/gym/athletics, skin patches that smell yeasty, half of this since a sciatic attack in 03, the rest since a 1-day attack in 06.  and that's not a comprehensive list... 

[*i had not thought much about such subtleties until now - every odd nuance matters  and functional medicine looks at them all, while over-specialized conventional medicine denies any connections, separates them all and profits by doing exact that to our detriment.]

the tip was that i may have a gene (not MTHFr, another one) that can't convert B6 into P5P which works with other B co-enzymes to turn food into energy - more specifically, can't produce enough P5P to support the methylation processes and Hcy metabolism aka can't convert Hcy toxic amino acids into energy the body can use, bringing down other Bs in the process.  and the tests i lined up for us actually confirmed all that as accurate. 

i came in asking to get all my Bs tested.  you ordered up B9, B12, CBC and CMP.  i then asked that we add B2 B6 and Hcy.  of those 3 extra tests, 2 came back as anticipated:  B2 out of range low and Hcy out of range high (confirming the P5P-deficiency connected to Morton's Foot announced in the nih.gov abstract: http://bloodposture.blogspot.com/2017/03/nihgov-mortons-foot-and-pyridoxal-5.html).  

before i call neurologist or start B-complex i'd like to assess the damage (of 50 years) and get a solid baseline of tests lined up.  i'd like to get the rest of my Bs:  B1, B3, B5, B7, iron, copper, zinc and potassium tested.  i'd like if you could order them up for me.  it'd help me financially and investigatively get to the right solution.

i can order all the tests i seek incl. candida blood test online, but many of them dig deep into my pockets.  i'd have to work many more jobs than my system can handle when i am losing every week more energy/balance/memory and feeling in my limbs and everyday i feel more sluggish/hungover low energy low mood.  catch 22.  i need to ID and stop the energy drain.

i'd like to 100% eliminate candida as a primary or secondary contributor in the mix, and if i heard you right, you said you could not find a candida blood test so i thought i'd share the test codes hoping you could order this $199 test for me:

Candida Antibodies  IgA, IgM, IgG Blood Test   

http://www.questdiagnostics.com/testcenter/TestDetail.action?tabName=OrderingInfo&ntc=30440

Test Code:  30440

CPT Code(s):  86628 (x3)

i'd also like if you could write a script on my behalf to order a special 'functional' micronutrient test to a draw site nearby i.e. quest/labcorp that can give me another angle of metrics.  i'm using money from granny who died last year due to complications re cortisone injections - will put it toward optimal health incl. alternative intracellular testing.   i'll get a form to you to make it super easy.  i got that far with my last PCP, but symptoms got urgent so switched to you instead.

i hope you can help me and my pocketbook out by ordering these tests.  if not, i'll know you're hands are tied and i'll have to dig into monies i rather not, but whatever you can do would be appreciated.  

thanks.

wolf

ps. if i should book a couple more visits to balance the books re extra time, i can do that.

ps. i just found out atenelol/betablockers [which she switched me to due to vertigo/blurry vision symptoms last year - among other things, atenelol slows down the heart which slows down the oxygen to vital organs like brain too further contributing to all my symptoms] can deplete key Bs/nutrients, so as you know, my intent with any supplementation is to ween off all rx once i have ramped up enough of it to adequately take over blood vessel/heart health, so i can take the calculated risk.

ps. the b-complex i found has all but zinc/magnesium incl B2, folate, B6 and B12 in their coenzyme activated mitochondrial forms i.e. P5P, 5-methylfolate, etc for folks with a gene that can't convert the regular vitamins from food into energy...

homocystex: https://www.amazon.com/HomocysteX-Provides-Vegetarian-Physician-Formulated/dp/B00A9ZI8BE

*if i have the MTHFr gene, then the 'Plus' version with TMG is recommended  

to round out supplementation, i'll order zinc and magnesium as powders/liquids.